Glaring Problem, Golden Opportunity
by SnowGivesMeVertigo
Summary: Rose notices the Doctor glowing, similar to the way he had when he was regenerating. Is he repressing another regeneration? Or is there something else going on? Sexy/Silly.
1. A Glaring Problem

*****Disclaimer: ****I do not own these characters or anything else. This story is simply a fans interpretation.*****

**Also, please be kind fellow whovians, when it comes to cannon. I've only been a member of the fandom for a couple years, and might not have everything exactly right.**

* * *

Rose Tyler had become increasingly worried about her Doctor. For the past several weeks she had begun noticing changes in him; not so much in his attitude but physical changes. He had begun to glow again. Rose couldn't remember much from his regeneration process, she had been a mere passenger in her own body when Bad Wolf had taken over. The one thing she did remember clearly was the unsettling golden glow of time emanating from his pores and spilling from his clear blue eyes. It was an image that would be forever etched in her memory. She had been so scared for him, for herself if she lost him. But the part of the memory that haunted her the most was her poor reaction to his new face, well after she had regained control of her body and was fully lucid. He had been in pain, pleading for her trust and instead she had mourned the body that was gone.

When he had started glowing again, she was determined to handle it better the second time around. No matter what face he wore, he would always be her Doctor, the same man underneath. That's not to say his new face hadn't grown on her. She loved his wildly perfect hair, his warm brown eyes, the sexy glasses he sometime wore, his freckles, his crooked nose... Really pretty much everything about him set her heart a flutter. But she knew in her heart that she would always love him, whatever he might look like. So if he was in pain now and fighting off another regeneration for her sake, she was going to do all she could to reassure him of her loyalty. Unsure how to confront him about the glowing directly without making him self-conscious again, she had taken to recording her observations in her diary; waiting patiently for a time to bring it up.

It was few weeks ago that she had first noticed the golden regenerative glow emanating from his abdomen. They hadn't been doing anything particularly dangerous, quite the opposite in fact. They had been enjoying some much deserved down time in front of the fireplace in the library, curled up together reading. He had been absentmindedly stroking her hair when she noticed the faint gold color. It had been muted under the layers of his clothing but it was disconcerting nevertheless. Not long after it had appeared, he ran off with some flimsy excuse about needing to make some repairs to the Tardis. Running and avoidance seemed to be his favorite ways of dealing with heavy issues. _Sigh._

It wasn't three days later that she had noticed it again. They had expertly thwarted an assassination plot on Phobeus IV, and the reigning king had thrown a lavish gala in their honor. It had absolutely been more dangerous than reading in the librar, but it wasn't while they were in direct confrontation with the assailants. Instead, it had happened while they were dancing together at the ball afterwards. At first she thought she was imagining things. His dashing tuxedo was so dark in color that it was well hidden, but it was there all the same.

Since then, there had been a smattering of similar events, with no detectable pattern. Who knows how many times it had happened previously, that she hadn't noticed? It was so faint, she couldn't be certain. Was it his fear of the feelings they were developing for one another that was causing him pain? The thought was disheartening._ Discouraging._ She needed to discuss this issue with someone she trusted.

Two months ago, right after Mickey had decided to stay in the parallel dimension, a new number had appeared on her mobile without explanation. Rose had no doubt that it was the work of her dear time ship. When she dialed it, a very surprised Jack Harkness had answered. Rose was ecstatic to reconnect with her long lost Captain. After the game station, she had been sure he was dead. After all, the Doctor had made no attempt to go back for him. The Time Lord must have had his reasons for not telling her about Jack's survival, but whenever she brought up Jack he shifted his feet uncomfortably and changed the subject. However, the Tardis clearly thought it was important that she know the truth. So Rose kept the frequent phone conversations between herself, the Captain, and the sentient ship.

Rose flipped the phone around in her hand, debating. If there was anyone that she could talk to about what was happening with the Doctor, it would be Jack. Was this problem too personal for the Doctor? Would he consider it a breach of his confidence? Her mind spun with possible scenarios but she snapped to attention when she heard him calling from the console room.

"Rose Tyler!"

"In here, Doctor!"

He burst into her room, bouncing on his heels impatiently. "What are you doing holed up in your bedroom when we have all of time and space to explore?"

"Where're we going today?"

"The conspicuous Constellation of Corteffia, to contemplate their celebrated collection of Colorful Chromoxylography!" He waggled his eyebrows at her with his usual flourish.

"Awesome alliteration! For an alien, anyway... Allons-y!" Rose giggled.

"Oi! That's my word!" While he feigned offense, she grabbed his hand and pulled him toward the doors of the Tardis excitedly. She decided that she would call Jack if the Doctor showed any further symptoms of regeneration.

...

The Doctor had lived with humans for centuries, immersed in the miasma of hormones and pheromones and all other moans they exude. Never, up until this point in his life, had he catalogued what they all meant, especially when it came to arousal. Humans were constantly aroused, from what he could tell, and were completely wrapped up in the pretense of finding out if others were aroused too. The whole thing seemed like a colossal waste of time, until he met Rose Tyler.

Rose was an enticing, unfurling, enigma and he wanted to know all there was to know about her: her moods, her dreams, her desires... His last body had a keen sense of smell and could detect even the tiniest change in her chemical cocktail of hormones. No matter what perfume or shampoo she was using, he could get past it to the scent that was distinctly Rose. This time around he had been blessed with an enhanced sense of taste. But, short of licking her, he was unsure of how to use his new sense to read her emotions. Licking her would be enlightening, but not socially acceptable. He could still smell her, but he had to concentrate completely in order to glean any useful data. Perhaps if he got closer? A person's scent is most potent at the place where the back of the neck meets the hair line... No! This was the sort of thinking that had pushed him to this point in the first place!

The other thing his last body had was self discipline and control. As unstable and wounded as he was, at least he had stronger will power. While in his ninth body, he had become besotted with his brave little companion without having the temptation to act on it. Well, not too much temptation anyway. But this body... This body was born of her; born entangled in her arms, pressed to her lips. It was made for her. Any self control he had around Rose was shed the instant he shed the long leather coat. This body was manic and impulsive and filled with desire. It wasn't his fault that his desire happened to glow. Sometimes he hated his 'superior biology'. Who ever thought that glow-y bits would be superior?

Amidst their latest adventure on Corteffia II, they had gotten themselves thrown into a cramped jail cell, _again. _Right as their captor was trying to lock the cell door, the Doctor had grabbed his sonic and used it to flip the key out of the his hand. The jailer had been surprised, to be sure, but the Doctor did not know that there were five other guards within close ear shot. The second time they were captured, the guards took note of his transdimensional pockets where the all important screwdriver was kept. After arguing amongst themselves about whether or not all of their pockets might contain similar devices, the Corteffians stripped he and Rose down to just their undergarments. It was only through sheer force of will that he had looked away while they disrobed her. Such a circumstance was not the right way to go about seeing her soft pink skin one part of his mind had resolved, much the dismay of the rest of his anatomy. The pair were redressed in what looked like thin hospital gowns to avoid any further threats. The Corteffians were a generally peaceful race, and their jails were unsophisticated. So they had only managed to detain the Doctor and Rose for one night, one awkward night.

...

He and Rose had sat side by side on the hard cot in the cell, discussing possible escape options. As the evening progressed, it became increasingly apparent that Rose was going to need to sleep. The Doctor had never been one to deny Rose anything, and deciding it would be the most comfortable position for her, let her rest her head against his shoulder. She had fallen asleep sitting up, nestled into the crux of the arm he had around her. That was fine. What was not fine, was the 2.36 hours in which his head was canted into a position where he was forced to either look down her cleavage or past it to where her hospital gown had ridden up dangerously high on her leg. Moving meant waking her up, so instead he closed his eyes and forced himself to fall asleep. This also turned out to be a mistake. He woke up 4.78 hours later to the familiar, but inappropriate, golden glow radiating from his arousal. The Time Lord scrambled to his feet and turned to the wall away from his now waking companion.

"You ok?" Rose had asked after being shaken abruptly back into consciousness.

"Yep! Just fine here! Fit as a fiddle and so on. Just needed to stretch my legs, sorry I woke you."

"Doctor! You're glowing! Did those bastards hurt you somehow? You're not regenerating are you?!"

"Er... Nope. Just some... Uh... Residual regeneration energy brought out by the phosphorus in the atmosphere here. Phosphorus is innately luminescent and brings out the otherwise diminishing glow-y-ness which you might be seeing now. It's an optical illusion really. Human light receptors aren't as keen quite as mine, you see." He was stammering. _Stammering! _A Time Lord never stammers. Ok rarely, a Time Lord rarely stammers.

"Uh huh, whatever... We need to get you back to the Tardis, yeah? Just to be sure you're alright."

How could she always see right through him, right into the heart of every issue? He made himself reply with something slightly more candid. "I'm always alright. Don't worry about me, ok? We'll get out of here soon enough."

"What d'ya mean don't worry about you? I always worry about you, no one's always alright. Now let me see your stomach, maybe I can determine what's causing this." She started to move towards him.

"No!... _No_, let it go Rose Tyler." His rich tenor voice grew rough at her persistence. He hated denying her curiosity, it was one item on a very long list of things he adored about her. In this case though, as with too many of the highly personal and dark facets of his life, he had to insist that she drop it. She knew him too well already and it frightened him.

"Doctor?"

"I said, let it go!" The harsh growl in his words caused her to fall back into a stunned sitting position on the cot. His anger faded as quickly as it came on when he saw how much he had startled her. "I'm sorry Rose... Look, the glowing is gone now. No need to worry about it anymore... Now let's figure a way back to the Tardis. I think we are in dire need of some banana pancakes!"

...

Rose had let it go, at least on the surface, but it worried the Doctor that she thought he was regenerating again. He knew how much pain the last regeneration had caused the both of them. That was not something he wanted Rose to associate with their more intimate moments. While this body's penchant for lots of layers had prevented this interaction from happening sooner, it was getting more and more difficult to hide his body's reaction to her proximity. He needed something else... Something that would have been scandalous to own back on Gallifrey... He sighed... There was no Gallifrey left to scandalize, thanks to him... He shook his head grimly and pleaded with the Tardis for help.

Bioluminescent dampening pants. That was what he'd been reduced to. He had no idea how the Tardis had acquired such an item and frankly he didn't want to know, but he sent her his mental thanks anyway. He looked at the clingy, plain, dark fabric and frowned. He supposed that his days of Tardis blue boxers with swirly galaxies on them were over. They had been the one clothing preference that had never changed throughout his regenerations. Ridiculous! Really, just... just..._ Absurd!_ All because of the silly little pink and yellow human he'd become so enthralled with. No that wasn't fair, not silly... _Brilliant, _his brilliant Rose.


	2. Deception

**A nod to Margaret Atwood that I hope some of you will pick up on... Hehe.**

* * *

That did it. Rose was going to talk to Jack. Talking to him in person about this would probably be best. Besides, seeing him again was way overdue. The tricky part was getting the Doctor to take her there without rousing his suspicions. No, not the Doctor... _The Tardis!_ Rose had never asked the ship to take her somewhere specific before and she wasn't entirely sure how to go about doing so.

Her bedroom was significantly more comfortable than the jail cell on Corteffia, but it had the downfall of being bereft of Time Lords. Tonight though, she would use her isolation to her advantage. Rose sat on her bed with her legs crossed and did her best to clear her mind. She focused herself on the comforting, omnipresent humming of the Tardis at the back of her consciousness. Reaching out to it mentally, she filled her thoughts with feelings of concern for their Doctor. The pulse she felt in response conveyed the impression of sympathy and the desire to help. Ok, this was a good start. Next, Rose imagined Jack Harkness in Cardiff, at Torchwood, preferably in the correct time line of their phone conversations.

"If I can get the Doctor to take me to 21st century London, is it possible for you to 'accidentally' miss the landing by a couple hundred kilometers? I hate being so deceptive, but I'm terribly worried about him."

After a pause of a few seconds, Rose felt a mischievous affirmative hum. Did the Doctor know that she could feel the Tardis so clearly? Over the course of her time traveling with him, the mental presence of the Tardis had become more and more defined. Was that normal, or was it somehow associated with Bad Wolf? That was a question for a later date. One problem at a time, Rose conceded. She snuggled down into her pink duvet, pleased but anxious about her determined course of action for the next day.

...

The next morning, Rose found the Doctor in the kitchen struggling to open an oddly colored jar of jam. She put a kettle on and sat back to watch, amused.

"Bloody Rifulatans and their jars... Stickiest jam jars in the galaxy, I'll have you know... And I'm not just saying that because I can't seem to... Grrr." He was hopping up and down, gritting his teeth.

Rose took the jar and ran it under some hot water for a moment before handing it back to her somewhat emasculated companion. With one final twist from the Doctor, the jar lid relented.

"Fancy a cuppa to go with your jam and toast?" She gave him a tongue touched smile, and he grinned widely back at her.

"Mmmmm...yeshh pleash..." He had already stuffed a jam smeared piece of toast into his mouth, and was licking the residual sweet stickiness from his fingers.

Rose watched him sucking on his digits and smacking his lips after each bite with wide eyes. She shook off the unbidden images of other things he could do with his clever tongue. "So Doctor, I was thinking we could stop by 21st century Britain today. I have a few errands to run."

He swallowed audibly. "You mean visit Jackie? We were just there last week!"

"Nah, we don't have to see my mum... unless you want to of course..." With exaggerated animation, the Doctor shook his head no. "Suit yourself. I just want to pop out to the shop and get some necessities like shampoo and feminine products. The Tardis is almost out of the brands I use."

It took all of his Time Lord finesse to keep from choking on his tea. Rose knew that if she were doing anything other than shopping for 'feminine products' he would insist on joining her. "Right, yes, by all means... Think you can handle that on your own, jeopardy friendly as you are?"

"I think I'll survive. How 'bout I bring back some chips for the both of us, yeah?"

"Rose Tyler, I think that is a wonderful idea. I should do some recalibrating on the relative dimensional stabilizer while you're gone. Nothing worse than an unstable dimension, relatively speaking."

When they had finished breakfast, the pair adjourned to the console room. The Doctor punched in the coordinates in time and space, flipped some levers, pressed some buttons, hit something with a mallet and they were off. The ship's exit from the Time Vortex was even less smooth than usual, and her landing jarred both of her passengers. Rose was sure that if she weren't seated on the jump seat, she would have face planted magnificently. She wondered if the added jolt was the result of her request. Pretending that he was sprawled on the floor to remove some grating, (and not from the rough landing) the Doctor set to work tinkering with the Tardis's inner workings.

"Back soon!"

"Mmmm Hmm… Remember the chips!" He called from under the console, over the buzz of the sonic screwdriver.

Rose exited the Tardis and breathed a sigh of relief. They had landed a mere 6 blocks from the Cardiff water feature (secret entrance to Torchwood), perfect. She pushed a wave of gratitude back to the ship and took up a brisk walk. She knew she would have to hurry in order for this plan to work. Perhaps she should have phoned Jack ahead of time to make sure he was in his office, but she hoped the Tardis had picked a time when that would be the case.

Surprisingly, she had very little trouble entering the Torchwood facility. No additional questions from security after she mentioned being an old friend of Jack's. They simply gave her directions on where to find the infamous Captain, and sent her on her way. When she stepped into his office, Jack turned around in his chair and leapt up to meet her, blue eyes sparkling.

"Rose? Is it really you?" Jack picked her up and spun her around before giving her a massive bear hug. "I was so thrilled when you started calling me! I missed you kid!"

"I missed you too!"

"Where's the Doctor?"

"It's just me this time… I had to see you."

"To what do I owe the pleasure?" Jack watched as Rose's smile soured into a concerned frown. "What's wrong?"

"I'm really worried about the Doctor… I need your help figuring out what's going on."

"Anything."

Jack gestured her toward a chair, and sat across from her patiently. Launching into a retelling of the Doctor's behavior the last few weeks, Rose began to let her emotions get the best of her. Tears pricked the corners of her eyes, as she told Jack that she thought he was holding back a regeneration because of her.

"What makes you think he's regenerating?" Asked Jack, sincerely.

"He keeps having these episodes where his abdomen glows gold. The same way his last body glowed all over as he died."

Jack's lips twisted up into a wicked smile. "You're joking right? Please tell me you're not joking."

"Of course I'm not joking, he could be dying! He could be having trouble maintaining this body or something!" Jack snorted and practically fell out of his chair laughing. Rose was yelling now. "This is serious Jack!"

Unable to catch his breath to speak, he nodded and opened one of his cabinets to remove a large, well-worn tome. He wiped a tear from his eye and flipped through the book to one of the many dog-eared pages before sliding it over to Rose.

"'The Complete Compendium of Compatible Inter-species Mating Rituals'?" Her gaze was completely without mirth as she stared him down. "What does this have to do with anything?"

Jack regained enough composure to elaborate. "By the 52nd Century… Humans, filthy species that we are, will have published many such books about 'coupling' with various compatible alien species. This is a particular favorite of mine, because it is the only one I know of to reference Gallifreyans."

Rose raised one eyebrow curiously. "Ok… and?"

"Read for yourself." The Captain pointed to a small easily overlooked footnote. At least, it would have been easily overlooked if it weren't thoroughly highlighted and underlined.

_If by some unlikely circumstance you find yourself in the company of a Gallifreyan whom, even more unlikely, seems to willing to entertain your amorous advances, please be advised of the following: According to the sparse ancient sources available on the subject, Time Lords evolved a way to spare their immense intellects from being consumed by questions of sexual intent. When two Gallifreyans desired each other physically, their respective reproductive organs took on a golden glow; thus eliminating unrequited sexual tension in their species and allowing them to focus their brain power on pondering the dynamics of time and space instead. Unfortunately for the readers of this book, over time all base desires were systematically repressed among the Time Lord elite through unparalleled mental control of their bodies. The glow of arousal became something shameful, and was often concealed if it was allowed to happen at all. That being the case, Gallifreyan mating was exceedingly rare, even between married couples. Children were often loomed, rather than produced sexually._

Rose had been unconsciously chewing on her bottom lip as she read. The metallic taste of her own blood brought her back into reality. "So, I've been freaking out this whole time because the Doctor had a _stiffy_?!"

Jack chuckled and elbowed her in the side. "So how'd you do it Rosie? What finally pushed his timey-wimey buttons?"

"Even if I knew for sure, I wouldn't tell you... ta!"

"Awwww... You're no fun."

"Apparently the Doctor thinks I'm fun." Rose stuck her tongue out at the wry Captain.

"So what're you gonna do now? Seduce him?"

"I dunno. Gimme a chance to figure this out first... I really should be getting back before he gets suspicious. I'll ring ya."

"You'd better, I want details! Feel free to stop by with any other alien boner questions."

"Yeah, I can see you've studied up on the matter." She flipped through the book, to illustrate her point. "The only race in here without notes and highlighting is the... Vogons? Those are real?"

"Douglas Adams knew more than he let on... And for some reason Vogons insist on including poetry in their courtship rituals... _Yeesh_." He shivered at the thought before reassuming his smug smile. "You should check out the rest of this book though, interesting read. I distinctly remember leaving a copy in the Tardis library."

"Hah! I'll think about it." Rose kissed him on the cheek, before leaving the Torchwood facility. "G'bye Jack. Thanks for your help."

The purchases that the Doctor expected her to be making were taken care of quickly at the closest shop. After doing so, she had been more or less skipping back to the Tardis, hot chips in hand, feeling as if an enormous weight had been lifted off her shoulders. The weight was replaced by an anxious swooping in her stomach, but she could reflect more on that later. Rose was happy, that is until she rounded the corner and caught sight of a very angry Doctor waiting for her in front of the police box with his arms crossed. His eyes flashed with the dark of the Oncoming Storm.

"How was the Captain?" He hissed. The words were meant to be cruel and filled with disdain. Rose walked straight past him into the Tardis, but not before rolling her eyes dramatically. "Did you really think I wouldn't notice that we were in Cardiff instead of London?"

"Possessive much? Call down Doctor, you're going to strain something."

His face turned beet red. "This is the thanks I get for letting you flirt with him all night? Oh yes! I know about all your little phone calls."

"Letting me? _Letting me?!_ I have the right to choose my own mates, ya know... While we're on the subject, how could you not tell me that he was alright?"

"He's not alright! It's not natural, his existence that is. Gives me the willies."

"Fine, I didn't say he had to travel with us again. But you still should have said something, anything! Given some indication he was alive... _Unless_… unless you were the one who mysteriously put his number into my mobile, and not the Tardis?"

"No, I most certainly did not."

"Then how did you even know I was talking to him?"

He sighed. "I heard you up late one night giggling and talking. Curious, I wanted to go see what you were up to, but the Tardis didn't seem to want to let me find you. I thought that maybe you had another pretty boy bloke that you were chatting up, but the Tardis confessed to giving you Jack's number. She was adamant that you needed someone else to talk to, what with Mickey gone." The Tardis hummed in the background, proudly, indignantly, as if to say she still felt that to be the case.

"Smart girl."

"I was starting to think so too... Until you tricked me into bringing you here to meet with him…_ Alone!"_ His hands were balled into fists at his sides.

"You... _You're jealous!_ Jack and I, we're not… And even if we were, you've never made any indication that we, you and I… UGH!... So you can swan off after some French tart for 5 hours, but I can't have 40 minutes alone with an old friend?_ Egotistical git!_"

"48.551 minutes." He muttered under his breath. "Then why were you_ secretly _meeting with Jack? Why not just tell me... _hmmmmm?_"

"_Because!_… Because I misinterpreted your weird alien light-up hard-ons as an indication that you were dying!" She blurted out before she could stop herself.

Every last bit of color drained spectacularly out of his face in that moment. His mouth, still hanging open as if he had an entire lecture planned, slammed shut. He stood as the definition of gobsmacked.


	3. Dammit

Nine hundred years, more if he was honest with himself... Nine hundred years of experience and wisdom and this little pink and yellow human could still confound him to no end. Of course Jack would have known about the glowing, but he was dismayed that Rose had to find it out from him. If he weren't such a bloody coward, she wouldn't have had to seek out Jack's... Er... _Expertise_. If he could only put his nebulous feelings for Rose into words. She was the light shining in his dark, the dawn rising to fend off his night... All the words and phrases he formulated on the subject felt cliche and insufficient... She was his salvation... Rose knew how he felt about her, she had to, right?... _Damn his persistent cowardice._

He pulled his eyes off his trainers and back to Rose. Her molten honey eyes were still hot, but they were starting to soften. The Doctor hadn't meant to upset her, well perhaps he had in the heat of the moment, but he regretted it now. She had only sought Jack out because she wanted to spare his feeling, because she cared... Cared about a damaged Time Lord... His sweet compassionate Rose... He would never deserve her... _Damn his guilty conscience... Damn his complicated past._

Rose sighed and embraced him. "I'm sorry Doctor."

"No, I'm the one that should be sorry... I was acting jealous. Please forgive me?" He hugged her back gratefully.

"Always... But umm... There is something I still don't understand." She blinked up at him from under thick eyelashes.

He braced himself for a question about his commitment to her, but he felt as though he owed her a few answers after such a big misunderstanding. "Yes?"

"What don't get is, why?"

She really doesn't know why he desires her? He had been certain that he smelled arousal on her too, from time to time. They had been dancing around the issue for months, hadn't they? All he managed to choke out was: "Why?"

"Yeah, like why the glowing? Wouldn't there be a better way to indicate desire? Seems counter productive to think your mate is dying, yeah?"

"Oh." He tugged on his ear sheepishly, just a simple question of his biology. "Erm... Well... What is procreation really, if not the simplest form of regeneration?... Extending one's genetic material into the next generation of one's species... Fundamentally, regenerative energy is necessary for Gallifreyans to conceive."

"That kinda makes sense." Rose shrugged.

"I suppose it was an important step in the evolution of my species, but it's really more of a bother nowadays... Regardless, I didn't get any say in the matter."

"S'ok, I just kinda wish I had found out about it before it came to a head... No pun intended."

That's makes two of us, he thought to himself. At least she was smiling again, even if it was at her own bad joke. "What would you have had me say?"

"Come straight out and tell me the truth?" He contorted his features in such a way as to look terribly embarrassed by Rose's suggestion. "No? Alright then, I'm sure that your vast Time Lord mind could have come up with some other plan to let me know what was happening."

"Such as?" The Doctor asked, ruffling his hair... Another nervous quirk of this body.

"Such as... Oh! You could have left a book on my bed about the subject. Like 'The Complete Comped-y Sexy What-not' book that I know Jack snuck into your library. Even if I had asked you about it, you could have blamed the Tardis for showing it to me." The ship was offended for being included in such a preposterous plan, and bristled in protest. _Damn his interfering ship._

The Doctor squinted one eye and cocked his head to the side, exaggerating the appearance of contemplating her idea. He blew a breath out of the corner of his mouth. "Weeeeelll, that may have worked. Assuming that she wouldn't have bristled, like she did just now, when I blamed her. Dead giveaway, that. Since the Tardis knew you were so upset about this, she probably would have actually given you the book herself, if it weren't..." His face flushed again. _Damn his hyperactive gob._

"If it weren't what?"

"Er... If it it weren't currently located on my nightstand."

"Oh really?"

"I was just checking to see if it had any further insight into my... _condition._" That and to read up on the signs of human interest and arousal. It was so much more ambiguous in humans, females especially. How did they keep from going mad with curiosity?

"Right."

The long awkward pause that followed would have been an ideal time to kiss her. He thought about it... thought about the bashful smile playing on her lips, thought about tasting her lips, thought about how quickly he could close the small gap between them, thought about brushing the stray lock of blonde hair back behind her ear, thought about brushing his fingertips across her temple so as to touch her mind... thought about how his new pants were starting to become useful now... _Damn his habit of overthinking situations._

"Well." Rose broke the silence first. "I could use a quick kip and a shower... Unless you have any other plans for the day?" She was looking at him expectantly.

Other than snogging her senseless against the console? "Nope."

"Ok then... I guess I'll see ya in a little while."

Was she looking for a reason to linger? He didn't want her to go, but he knew the moment to kiss her had passed. They couldn't go back to ignoring the feelings they had for each other, could they? Pretending they weren't there was certainly less complicated than the alternative. In the past, it had been his preference absolutely..._ Damn his self doubt._

She was walking out the room, looking a bit disappointed. Rejected. He wasn't rejecting her! _Dammit, dammit, dammit_, sod the complications... "Let me take you to dinner tonight. I know this great spot on the planet of Dristalline, you'll love it! They have these amazing dark purple beaches. Oh, and after nightfall you can see their four large moons, each shining in a slightly different shade of silver, it's breathtaking! I think we deserve a night out, what d'ya say?"

Her gorgeous smile burst back across her face. "Sounds brilliant! I'll meet you back here in 4 hours? Was serious about needing a kip though... I spent most of last night feeling guilty about my disingenuous plan for this morning."

The Doctor chuckled in spite of himself. "Go take a nap Rose Tyler, then we'll have dinner."


	4. Dristalline

Rose lay in her bed trying to quell her racing thoughts. The Doctor had just asked her on a date, a real, proper date. She ran their conversation over and over again in her mind, and she was sure that he had meant it as a date. It was not where she thought the day would lead when she woke up that morning. Then again, everyday traveling with the Doctor was unexpected, but she wouldn't trade her crazy life for anything.

Right now though, she needed to rest. The only energy left in her system was adrenaline and caffeine. Deep breaths Rose, she thought to herself, you want to be well rested for tonight's adventure. Again, she reached out to the Tardis for help. The ship hummed softly and soothing waves of relaxation washed over her. Why hadn't she asked the ship for help sleeping the night before? She was still getting used to being able to ask things of the Tardis. The calm humming eased her down into a restful sleep... brilliant, brilliant time ship.

Rose awoke exactly three hours later, as the ship gradually brought her back to consciousness. So much better than an alarm clock, she mused. She sent feelings of gratitude back to the Tardis as she climbed out of bed, feeling refreshed. Upon opening the door to her en suite, she found a warm bubble bath already drawn for her, smelling of her namesake.

"You're going to spoil me, old girl."

...

The Tardis was happy to help her beloved time-kissed human girl. Her Thief may have trouble understanding his feelings for her, but the ship did not. She loved them both tremendously and knew it was only a matter of time until they came together.

After a quick scan of her wardrobe, she found the perfect navy blue dress for the evening. The ship placed it on the girl's bed, where she would be sure to see it after she finished drying off.

_Ah, such a beautiful sound_... Her Wolf was singing quietly in her bath as she washed her golden hair, it was enchanting. She carried the melody to where her Thief was pacing nervously. Immediately, he stopped in his tracks and cocked his head to one side. The Tardis had given him this gift before, the gift of the Wolf's song. She knew it soothed his wounded mind like a balm. Anything she could do to relax this damaged man she loved, she did. If she could give him the one thing, the one girl he cherished above all else in the universe, she would. But she had to settle for helping them along as best she could.

Her dear friend sorely needed compassion and forgiveness. The two things he never seemed to allow himself, were the two things that were personified by her golden Wolf. A more perfect match for him, she couldn't have imagined. The singing stopped at that moment, and her poor Thief was left bristling with anxiety as he straightened his tie. She had to think of a way to give him some measure of encouragement. _Oh yes_... A giggle of a hum in his ear, and she placed his glasses on the console in front of him.

"You think I should wear my glasses, huh? Does Rose like the glasses? Why haven't you told me that before?"

If the Tardis could shrug innocently, that was certainly what she would have been doing.

...

Rose wandered into the console room 11.35 minutes later than she said she would, still, not bad for his less than punctual companion. Not everyone could have his impeccable time sense. But whatever she lacked in punctuality, she more than made up for in shear beauty. That night, she was a vision in Tardis blue.

"This alright? Wasn't sure of the dress code where you're taking me."

"Yes... The dress is...er... that is to say, you look...Fantastic."

The strappy gold sandals she wore, accentuated her toned runners calves. Her knee-length navy dress was synched at her slim waist, and swooped up into a halter top neckline that hugged her collarbone. There was a gold clasp in the strap just above the curve of her right breast and a gold bracelet dancing on her left wrist. Rose had kept her blonde hair loose and flowing over her shoulders. Her pouty lips were painted a tempting shade of pink... Golden hoop earrings... Was she trying to tell him something with all those golden accents?

"Doctor... You're staring."

"Umm... Yes, well... Allons-y?" It was more of a bashful question than his usual exclamation. Much to his relief, she took his hand and wound her fingers through his. The warm smile she gave him was incredibly reassuring, and his usual exuberant energy returned at once. "So Dristalline is located in the galaxy you humans call Andromeda, the galaxy next door. You're practically neighbors! Weeeelll, I say neighbors but eventually, your two galaxies will collide and merge. Messy business that'll be, I assure you. But no need to worry, that won't happen until the year four billion A.D... Give or take a few hundred thousand years... Want to go see that sometime? The merging of Andromeda and the Milky Way?"

"Sure... But not tonight."

"No, not tonight... Tonight, the moon lit beaches of Dristalline and their spectacularly tasty seafood." He steared the Tardis out of the time stream toward their destination. The landing was relatively smooth and Doctor looked back at Rose expecting a compliment on his brilliant piloting skills, but she was busy fidgeting with her bracelet. His companions never seemed to comment on the good landings, he noted, with only a slight blow to his ego.

In four proud strides he was at the door, and threw it open. There, in front of them, was the shimmering purple beach bathed in the soft light of dusk. The Doctor was starting to let his perfect landing go to his head, until he took a step out the door.

"_Bloody Hell!_"

"What could possibly be wrong? This is even more amazing than I imagined."

"I missed the time... The planet hasn't been colonized yet. See? No charming shops or restaurants. No place to eat that dinner I promised you." He turned around and kicked the corner of his police box hard enough that he was soon hopping up and down in the sand, holding his foot.

"S'ok. I'll just go make us something in the Tardis kitchen and we can have a picnic, yeah?"

He wallowed in self pity for a second longer before letting himself forget his wounded toe and wounded pride. Then he flashed his considerate companion a winning smile. "Rose Tyler, eternal optimist."

...

While the Doctor busied himself setting up their picnic blanket on the beach, Rose poked around the Tardis kitchen looking for something to cook. She probably should have gotten some more food that morning at the shop, but it was too late for that. There was something wrapped in tin at the back of the fridge, it smelled like a combination of the Doctor's chucks and baby spit up. Blimey, when was the last time they cleaned this thing out? Repressing a gag, she chucked the foil ball into the rubbish bin, along with most of the contents of the Tardis refrigerator.

"There's got to be something here... Any suggestions?" Rose asked the ceiling. The ship seemed apologetic as a small package of banana pudding appeared on the counter. "This'll do. Thanks!"

After she mixed up the pudding and set it in the fridge to cool, she went about heating up their leftover Chinese food from the other night. (From the planet China, not the country, though ironically their culinary styles were very similar) It was a modest spread, but the company and the ambiance were sure to make it better.

The planet really was gorgeous, the moons, the water, all of it. Rose was captivated by the adorable pale blue 'flying-chipmunks' that took turns begging for their food. The Doctor informed her that they were more closely related to Earth's sugar-gliders, but she liked the idea of 'flying chipmunks'. There were also tiny purple hermit crab looking creatures that roamed the beaches, presumably their shells were what gave the sand it's distinctive color. The air was warm and fragranced with something floral that she couldn't quite identify.

The Doctor had laid out a large cream colored blanket for them to eat on, complete with a bouquet of the local flora. Unfortunately though, he was uncharacteristically quiet as he picked out the choice morsels from, what Rose referred to as, 'alien lo mein'. Was he feining shyness after all they had been through together? She fidgeted with her bracelet and her hair in turn, as flashbacks to awkward primary school dates threatened to ruin her mood.

_No_, she had waited for this for too long to let it fizzle in silence. "Penny for your thoughts?"

"Hmmm?... Oh, I guess part of me was hoping that there would be a grand ballroom and an orchestra playing when we were finally ready for this step… Not week old Chinese food." That wasn't the problem, she knew him better than that. They could be perfectly happy together sharing a stale crust of bread tossed to them in a dungeon pit.

"It's us Doctor, you know that doesn't matter. What's really on your mind?"

"Well… I was also trying to remember the last time I was on a proper date. It's been a long, _long_ time for me." His glasses slid down his nose a bit when he looked down at something on his fork. He adjusted them habitually. How could he make adjusting glasses look so irresistibly sexy?

"You were married at one point, right? On Gallifrey? You told me once that you were a father there."

"Yes, but it was more of an arranged marriage, an acceptable alignment of genetics in the eyes of the Council. I never really dated her, so to speak."

This was progress, at least he was being open and direct with her. "But you have been on dates before?"

"I'm over 900 years old Rose, I have been on plenty of 'dates'. I have courted and been courted… but not in a few hundred years, and never with a human counterpart."

"Interspecies 'courting' wasn't very well received by the High Council, was it? S'ok Doctor, I understand." Rose ducked her head and went back to playing self-consciously with her bracelet.

"I don't care about that Rose, honestly." He leaned over and lifted her chin back up so that she was once again looking into his warm brown eyes, feeling his sincerity. "When have I ever cared what the Council thought of my behavior? I'm just not sure how to move our relationship forward. It's not that I don't want to… but I dont know how to tell if you're receptive to my _advances_… You don't… er… _glow_."

Deep love for the Doctor and her burgeoning confidence kept the butterflies in her stomach from holding her back at that moment. She took his hand tentatively. "Well, would it be alright if I took some of the initiative? And you can tell me if you start feeling uncomfortable, yeah?"

"Absolutely!... I mean, yes, that seems like a prudent approach." It was endearing the way he was suddenly trying to reel in his enthusiasm.

"Always the romantic, you are." She laughed.


	5. Pudding

**Authors note: I hated Reinette. And I hate that I felt like I had to waste a sentence on her in this chapter... GitF annoyed me to no end. I still believe that Rose is the love of the Doctor's life. **

* * *

Thankfully, Rose had stopped prodding before she got to the real source of his trepidation. It was, and always had been, his fear of losing her. Whether he lost her in battle as the demon so cruelly suggested, lost her to the desire for a normal domestic life, lost her love due to something stupid he did, or lost her due to old age, the fact remained that he would eventually lose her. The thought alone could break both of his hearts simultaneously. He was cursed to outlive all of the ones he cared for and wander the universe haunted by their memories.

But this little human shopgirl had slowly managed to erode all the barriers he had put up around his hearts. He had long since conceded that he cared deeply for Rose, more than any of his previous human companions. Longing for a romantic relationship with her, however, was something he had only recently allowed himself. Yes he had always desired her, but what he was feeling now was more than just desire. This was more than just a fleeting infatuation like Reinette. This was so much more than that.

She had already promised him her forever. Would sixty or so years with Rose be worth centuries of missing her? Would the pain be worse if he were forced to live with himself, never having tried at all? He desperately wanted to be able to live in the moment with Rose Tyler, to appreciate the time they had together to its fullest.

"Well, would it be alright if I took some of the 'initiative'? And you can tell me if you start feeling uncomfortable, yeah?"

Wait, _what had she just asked him?_ Heaven help him, whether it existed or not he needed divine intervention. The Doctor's never ending gob carried on without him. "Absolutely!... I mean, yes, that seems like a prudent approach."

"Always the romantic, you are." _Oh, that flirtatious giggle!_... Mischief had spread across her face in a smug smirk.

Rose scooted across the blanket, until she was right next to the Doctor. Leaning back against him, she laid her head on his shoulder. Her soft blonde hair tickled the Doctors cheek and neck. Would now be an appropriate time for him to smell her? Not that he could help it at this proximity. He took a deep intoxicating breath and let the mix of chemicals linger in the back of his throat. Rose... Rose smelled of... _Oh Rassilon_... Rose smelled wonderful. Soapy triglycerides laced with rose flower extract (appropriately) from her bath, talc in her makeup, and her natural pheromones. Was there anything in the universe that could smell half as alluring as Rose Tyler pheromones?

"Doctor, did you just smell me?" She teased.

"What? _No_... No, I was smelling... The banana pudding you made. Smells fantastic!"

She picked up the bowl of the aforementioned pudding and took a spoonful. Her full lips wrapped around the creamy dessert, and for a second, he saw her pink tongue curl around some of the pudding. Was she doing that on purpose? Was this part of her seduction? Now she was licking the spoon clean, making him jealous of the inanimate piece of silverware.

"It is pretty fantastic, you want some?" His companion asked innocently.

The Doctor thought about the various ways he could approach this. He could lavish the same attention to his spoonful of pudding, hoping that she would take notice. Inevitably though, that would lead to a battle of pretense. They could both be so stubborn and continue to escalate the battle indefinitely. It could take forever for one of them to cave that way. He had already waited for her for so long. Instead, he decided to go for the tiny bit of banana-y goodness that was clinging to the corner of her mouth, gently with his forefinger. Before he could pull his finger back, Rose captured it and kissed away the pudding.

"Oi! I was gonna taste that!"

She dipped her own finger into the bowl and brought it up to his lips, offering. In a quick motion, he grabbed her wrist and held it still. The Doctor scrunched up his nose to inspect the digit through his glasses, which had slid down his nose again. With a long deliberate lick to her finger, he retrieved the pudding and followed by clicking his tongue against the roof of his mouth as he analyzed the flavor.

"Not bad." Mused the Doctor.

Rose pulled herself up onto her knees in front of him and moved her free hand to rest on his cheek. The Doctor tightened his grip on her other wrist and swallowed thickly. Her amber eyes shone like a sunset over Gallifrey as she searched his face for permission. In the time it took for his hearts to skip a double beat, she closed the distance between them and pressed her lips against his. The gentle kiss was warm and full of affection.

Too soon, she withdrew and blushed down to the neckline of her dress. She was beautiful and bashful and, without knowing it, had successfully removed one of the last barriers that the Doctor had left. He knew that once this thing had started with Rose, he would never be able to stop. A quick tug on her wrist, pulled her back to him. He placed her arm around his neck and pressed into a more passionate kiss. His own hands instinctually wound around her waist as he pulled her closer still. They were both on their knees now, chests flush up against one another in the moonlight.

Again Rose broke the kiss, and the Doctor whimpered in protest. She stood up and straightened her skirts before reaching out for his hand. Kneeling like that was a bit awkward, he had to admit, but his lips already felt cold and lacking without hers. The Doctor took her hand and jumped up onto his feet, desperate to recapture her lips.

He got in a few misplaced pecks as Rose shuffled him backwards up against the door of the Tardis. It was only when his back was firmly pressed against the police box that she kissed him again in earnest. This time, she was holding him firmly by his lapels and ran her tongue along the union of their lips until he relented access with another whimper. Their tongues found each other. She tasted like the banana pudding they had just shared. With his eyes closed, his brows knitted up and together expressing the bliss he felt in kissing Rose, expressing the relief from nearly two years of build up. If he weren't wearing those bioluminescent dampening pants he would have been embarrassed at how quickly his body was responding to her. He moaned softly into her mouth.

At some point, Rose must have opened the door behind him because she was guiding him backwards again, except this time she keep her lips locked with his. They were inside the Tardis now, although the Doctor couldn't care less where they were as long as Rose kept doing that thing with her tongue. He was like putty in her hands, drawn like a moth to her flame, and all those other similes that flashed through his mind which essentially meant that he was helpless to her. He wasn't used to allowing himself to be completely at the mercy of another creature, but when that creature happened to be Rose he found it surprisingly liberating.

Suddenly, he felt the cold metal of the console behind him. Was she going to shag him on the console? A war broke out in his mind between his long time fantasy of doing exactly that, and the rational concern that they would inadvertently press a button that they shouldn't... Well... _then again,_ if he let himself get hung up on things they shouldn't be doing, he certainly wouldn't be raking his right hand through her long blonde hair... Or nibbling on her bottom lip... Or flicking her tongue desperately with his... With his left hand, he braced himself on the edge of the console.

Rose trailed her lips across his cheek, along his jawline, to his ear. "Is this still ok?" Her breath was tantalizingly hot against his neck.

A strained noise reverberated in his throat that sounded vaguely like 'Rose' in Gallifreyan. Skillfully, she divested him of his over coat and began working the buttons on his suit jacket, all the while peppering soft kisses around his pulse point. When she pulled back to look at him, her eyes were heavily lidded and filled with lust. The Doctor was sure the look on his face mirrored hers, perhaps slightly more bewildered, but filled with desire all the same.

It was then that Rose's expression fell. She furrowed her brows like she was confused about something. Her hands, that had been busy removing his suit jacket, dropped slowly down to her sides.

"Am I doing something wrong?" She asked meekly.

"No! _Absolutely not_... Why would you think that?"

"Well, I just thought by now... Umm... There would be evidence of... I mean, if I were a Time Lady, I would certainly be glowing after a snogging like that."

"What? Oh... _Oh! _I would be, if... I mean, I am... Except." _Spit it out you idiot, before you ruin the moment,_ he berated himself. "I asked the Tardis to give me special pants that are designed to hide my somewhat 'luminescent tendencies' when I'm around you."

"So you are enjoying this?" She still sounded self conscious, which was terribly unnecessary.

He shrugged off his jacket, scooped up Rose in his arms, turned them around, and placed her sitting on the console with one leg on either side of his hips. As he kissed her once more, the Doctor pressed his body hard against hers, in all the right places so as to erase any doubt she may have had about his interest. The sudden pressure he put between her legs made her gasp. The fumbling with clothes resumed with greater urgency. The Doctor loosened his tie, and helped her with the buttons of his oxford. _Damn his multiple layers of clothing! _Stumbling as he tried to remove his trainers without losing contact with her lips, he couldn't get over the fact that he had all the grace and charisma of a randy 150 year old (which was none, by the way). It was strangely appropriate that everything felt so new again with this sweet girl.

Rose kicked off her sandals in one fluid motion and grabbed him by his loose silk tie. She slid off the console and lead him, via the tie, to the door that the Tardis had placed closest to the console room. He internally sang the praises of his merciful ship when that door happened to open into his bedroom.


	6. Golden Opportunity

**This story has been terribly fun to write, channeling my inner Brit. I hope you all enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. I look forward to your comments! Cheers!**

**P.s. - Sequel is finished, go check out: Golden Opportunity, Silver Paradox**

* * *

The entangled couple crashed into the Doctor's bedroom. Once inside, Rose slipped the tie out from under his collar with a satisfying '_swish_'. Tossing the silk tie to a far corner of the room, she returned to the final buttons on his steel blue oxford. The shirt was so stiffly pressed, that she had a hard time unbuttoning it without parting from the lips of the man wearing it. She growled impatiently. It took far too long to remove the offending garment only for her to find yet another annoying layer underneath; a gray tee-shirt.

"How many frickin' layers are you wearing?"

"Last one I promise."

"You're not wearing four layers on your lower half are ya?" Asked Rose, as she moved her attention to the button at the front of his trousers.

"No, just three."

"_Three?_ I was joking, how are you possibly wearing more than two? Trousers, pants and what else?"

His cheeks reddened. "I wasn't ready to give up my usual boxers when the Tardis gave me those new lightproof boxer-briefs… Therefore, I am wearing my usual ones on the outside of my new ones…"

"Oh my God, Doctor…" Rose laughed so hard then, that she snorted.

"Oi! You know how particular I am when it comes to my wardrobe." He said, as he straightened up his posture indignantly.

"More like _peculiar_!"

Rolling his eyes did nothing to stop the torrent of her laughter. "Ha, ha… Very funny, Rose. Seems rather unfair, though, that you are still fully clothed while you laugh at me."

A wicked grin spread across his face. Rose squeaked as he pulled her tight against him again and unzipped the side of her dress. Keeping one hand firmly on the small of her back, his nimble fingers brushed up the newly exposed skin on her side to the clasp at her collar bone. With a flick of his thumb, the clasp came undone and her navy chiffon dress slid down to her waist. A step backwards, a shake of her hips, and the dress fluttered the rest of the way down to the floor.

Her heart was pounding and she felt goose flesh prickle along her arms. If he was trying to silence her giggles, it worked. Rose was speechless but unabashed as she stood, nearly bare, in front of her Doctor. His arms and jaw fell slack, and she watched as his eyes slowly darkened. It was as though he was having trouble comprehending what he was looking at.

"Rose Tyler, you're not wearing a bra!" His voice cracked.

"Noticed that, did ya?" She winked. "Couldn't find one that worked with the neckline of that dress."

Rose shrugged coquettishly, sauntered over to his bed, and sat down. She almost felt guilty for how much she enjoyed teasing the Doctor... _Almost_... She didn't worry about whether or not he was enjoying himself anymore, not considering the look that was currently pinned on his face. The fact that she could dumbfound a 900 year old genius of a man bolstered her confidence tremendously. Leaning back on the bed, she held herself halfway up on her elbows. Her eyes trailed up the partially dressed man still standing in the doorway, and she gave him her best 'come hither' look. He really did look handsome with his hair mussed and glasses askew, after sharing such an impassioned snogging with her.

It only took another moment for the befuddled Time Lord to finish processing the situation. He pulled off his tee shirt, pushed his trousers down, tripped stepping out of them, and scrambled to chase her to the bed. He caught himself on the edge of the bed frame with a manic chuckle. Rose helped to hoist his lanky body up onto the mattress next to her before they both collapsed in laughter.

"You make me feel so young again." He said, catching his breath.

His freckled chest rose and fell next to her, and Rose wondered if his respiratory bypass system had kicked in yet. The Doctor rolled onto his side next to her, and propped himself up on his elbow. With the cool pad of his finger, he began tracing circular patterns on the skin of her chest and stomach; Gallifreyan words, she realized. Words he had yet to say? Words he might never say out loud? Simple words carried so much weight for the Time Lord, but she loved him, even if he was never able to say the words back. Gradually, his fingers wandered lower to the elastic band of her knickers.

"Really Rose? Sparkly gold knickers?" She struck her tongue out from between her teeth, and the Doctor couldn't resist kissing her smile. He also couldn't resist teasing her back about her choice in undergarments. Fair is fair, she supposed. "While I appreciate the sentiment... By the time I had gotten to your undergarments, I like to think that I'm not be so daft as to still be misinterpreting your romantic cues and intent..."

"You are pretty clueless when it comes to picking up on my romantic cues."

"Cheeky!"

"Actually, the Tardis won't give me any other knickers today... I have no idea where she hid my usual ones that I brought aboard with me."

"Well, I suppose that would explain the pile of pink lacy things that I found under the wormhole refractor this morning."

She giggled again. "Just shut up, Doctor."

Their lips locked and the Doctor moved so he was holding himself over her in a way that kept one of his hands free to knead her breasts. A trembling Rose wriggled out of her undies and let her hands explore his lean, fit figure. She couldn't believe how cool his skin felt to the touch. Every muscle in his shoulders and back were stretched tight, straining to maintain the current position of his body. When he pulled back, the way he looked at her made her feel as though she were the only thing he cared for in the entire universe.

He ducked down to kiss her pulse point before tracing his cool tongue from her neck to her navel. Rose realized he was crawling backwards off the bed. Once he was on his feet, he lowered both sets of his pants together. Rose sucked in a sharp breath when she saw him, in all his golden glory, for the first time... _Magnificent!_ Could naughty bits be magnificent?... _Didn't matter!_ That's what they were. He looked human enough, save for the fantastic, ethereal glowing that pulsed faintly in time with his hearts beat... _Wow_...

"Doctor, you're _beautiful_."

"What a coincidence, I was just going to say the same thing about you."

...

What followed was a haze of lust and urgent need. The Doctor was so excruciatingly aroused by the time he found his way back onto the bed that he could no longer maintain his composure. And Rose... _Oh Rassilon._.. Rose was so thoroughly ready for him, that he slid deeply into her immediately. For so long, he'd wanted her, fantasizes about her, dreamed about her... but nothing he imagined could have prepared him for the reality of their union. Heat radiated from her core, surrounding him... Growing hotter with each movement he made. Every nerve ending in his body was ablaze with Rose.

He longed to reach for her mind as well but the intensity of his pleasure in her mind would have overwhelmed her, since they had never tried any telepathy between them before. Sometime they could try it, but tonight, he was having a hard enough time holding on as it was. Any additional stimulus would have driven him over the edge far too quickly.

Rose was writhing beneath him, calling his name over and over. He had his head buried against her neck in her hair as he called back to her in his native language... Sometime he would repeat those words to her in English... Sometime he would tell her his real name, so she could call that one out in ecstasy too... _But tonight._.. Tonight it was enough to finally release all the pent up tension between them, to revel in each others bodies, to feel time slow down around them... Time might even stop for the union of Rose Tyler and her Doctor... _Rassilon, never let this end_...

Based on the strained moans coming from his Rose, the Doctor knew that she was rapidly chasing her climax. Her breath was coming ragged and hot. In an effort to hold on as long as possible for her, his quick rhythmic movements deteriorated and became erratic. The heat and throbbing pressure brought on by her peak, however, proved too much for him to ignore. He cried out her name and let himself tumble after her. In that shining instant, he forgot all his pain, forgot all of his suffering, forgot all of time. There was only now, _only Rose._

They collapsed onto the sheets panting together, reveling in the afterglow. They exchanged languid glances and the Doctor collected his precious pink and yellow human into his arms. As she snuggled into his embrace, she whispered quietly: "I love you, you know. My Doctor."

His hearts soared... How did he ever earn the love of such a perfect creature? How could he ever hope to be worthy of it, damaged as he was? He did know that he would spend the rest of his life trying to live up to her perception of him, trying to be the man she thought he was.

The Doctor placed a tender kiss on the back of her neck and murmured a string of beautiful Gallifreyan into her ear. The delicate, flowing words could have been roughly translated as: 'You are more dear to me than all the stars in the universe, my beloved. I never expected your love to grace my existence, but love is nothing if not unexpected. As it should be, so we are.' She hummed contentedly and drifted off to sleep.

Only once her breathing evened out and her heart rate slowed, did he allow himself to whisper in English: "I love you too. My Rose." _Damn his persistent cowardice._

...

The next morning, Rose opened her eyes to find the Doctor sitting beside her on the bed and a tray of blueberry waffles with a steaming cup of tea on the nightstand.

"Good morning, Sleepyhead."

She stretched and yawned. "Mmmmm... g'morning Handsome... Hey, where did you find the ingredients to make blueberry waffles? I couldn't find a single thing to make for dinner last night."

"I popped out to the shop while you were sleeping... 10 hours was a long time for me to try to stay in one place. I didn't think that you usually need quite that much sleep."

"Well, it might have had something to do with the mind blowing shag I had last night." She knew that stroking his ego could be dangerous, but when it came to their love making he absolutely deserved the accolades.

"Oh? And how mind blowing would you say it was, exactly?"

"Mmmm... I'm not sure I remember the precise amount in which my mind was blown... I might need a second sample for a proper analysis." She giggled and rolled back into the blankets. "Holy shit, I'm starting to sound like you."

When the Doctor leaned down to kiss her, she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him on top of her. The couple shared a few lazy, wet kisses, as Rose dispelled the last remaining vestiges of sleep from her system. Memories of the night before clouded her waking mind with renewed desire. The Doctor was endlessly sexy.

"Rose?"

"Hmmm?" She managed to get out while capturing his lips once more.

"You're glowing."

"Well, I am pretty damn happy right now."

"No, I mean... You're physically glowing, faintly, but your abdomen is definitely brighter looking than it should be."

"Oh hey! Would'ya look at that. Is that some sort'a side-effect from what we did last night?"

"I really don't know. Not much precedent on the matter... Regardless, I think I would like to run some tests on you in the Med Bay." He sounded so clinical.

Such a bloody buzz kill, that was. But she could let it slide, the stars had finally aligned and allowed them to be together. They had all the time in the universe laid out before them, waiting for them to begin their adventure. The Doctor and Rose in the Tardis, as it should be. Besides, they could alway return to his room for the all important 'second sample' later.

She blew out an exasperated sigh. "Fine... but not until after breakfast, yeah?"


End file.
